Billie Carr came from a family interested in politics. Her interest in politics started in 1950s, when she went to a meeting of the Steel Workers' Union of which her husband was the President, and saw the appalling living conditions of the Chicano...

Robert Eckels describes his experiences as former Harris County judge. He discusses politics in Harris county and in the city of Houston, as well as his involvement in handling the influx of the evacuees from New Orleans during hurricane Katrina,...

Mayor Bill White Collection;Houston Oral History Project : a great city voices its past.

Daniel Bustamante was born in south Texas and attended the University of Houston where he became politically active with the MAYO (Mexican American Youth Organization) group and the leftist Raza Unida Party in the late 1960s. Throughout the 1970s,...

In this interview, Mary Jane Blackburn discusses how she was selected as the campaign manager for Ron Paul. She discussed the 1974 campaign in which Paul ran for Congress. Blackburn details Paul's campaign strategy and his views on government. She...

Dick Gottlieb was a former TV entertainer who decided to run for city council in 1969. He beat the incumbent in a run-off election achieving an upset victory. He credited his TV image and prior experience as a fundraiser for local and national...

Ann Lower was the campaign manager for Representative Robert C. Eckhardt between the years of 1976-1980. At the time of this interview, Eckhardt was running for the United States Congress representing Texas's 8th congressional district for the...

Patricia Gandy describes her experiences as a Democratic party organizer in the Pasadena and Deer Park areas of Texas. She was chairperson of the Harris County Democrats and also ran for Deer Park city council where she was subsequently elected to...

In this interview from 1975, Louie Welch discusses his history as a politician in Houston. He began his career as a council member and served under Mayors Oscar Holcombe and Lewis Cutrer. Welch was then elected as Mayor to the City of Houston first...

Attorneys at Law, Partner, 1960-61; Assistant Criminal District Attorney, 1961-61, U.S. Attorney, Harris County Judge.Served on the Constitutional Revision Commission for the State of Texas, and as Vice-Chairman of the Committee on the judiciary.

The Socialist Workers Party was formed as an offshoot of the Communist Party in 1928. Dan Fein discusses the party’s presence and activities in Houston in the 1970s, including the Young Socialists Alliance on the University of Houston campus, and...

Frances "Sissy" Farenthold, lawyer, member of the Texas Legislature (1968-1972); twice candidate for the Democratic gubernatorial nomination (1972 and 1974); first female nominated as the Democratic candidate for the U.S. vice presidency (1972);...

A collection of radio addresses from Mayor Oscar Holcombe. Mayor Holcombe gave some of these radio addresses in 1940 during his re-election campaign. He spoke about the achievements of the Holcombe Administration and the proposed projects...

In this interview, former Houston Mayor Fred Hofheinz discusses the political scene in Houston during the 1970s; accomplishments during his administration as mayor of the city; African American community social and political aspects; minorities'...

Centenarian and civil rights activist Quentin Mease is interviewed by David Goldstein. Quentin describes his work with the African American community, the YMCA, and his involvement with the creation of the Harris County Hospital District